You lose, you win: just change 1 meal a day. Replace it with a Superfoods Recipe—and you'll drop pounds and add health. It's that simple!

Vegetarian Times, Jan, 2005 by Mark Harris

Hungry for a long and healthy life? Scientists probing the connection between diet and longevity don't have an exact recipe yet. But they've identified some foods that definitely belong on the ingredients list. Like tomatoes, Blueberries. Broccoli. And walnuts.

These fruits, nuts and veggies are among a small, elite group of foods with special powers. In study after study, they stand out as true "superfoods," able to improve our health and extend our lives. How? By destroying cancer cells, whisking away bad cholesterol, preventing infection, sharpening memory and more.

And there's a bonus: Because most superfoods are super low in calories--a cup of cooked spinach has a measly 41--making them a mainstay of your diet can both help you add years and help you lose weight.

Of the best-researched superfoods in longevity literature, we've picked seven. We waded through mounds of research, then went for a wide range of health benefits, from head (brain-boosting blueberry) to heart (cholesterol-cutting oats). Next, we weighed practical considerations. To make our list, a food had to be both easy to find (why hearthealthy kale didn't make the cut) and easy to eat (the seedy pomegranate, despite its anti-hypertensive powers, lost out here). Naturally, our picks are all veg, but that's not just us. Most common superfoods are, in tact, meatless because it's mostly plant nutrients that seem to confer good health.

To make super-eating super simple, we whipped up our longevity foods into a week's worth of quick, tasty, low-cal, low-fat recipes. Rotating these dishes into your daily diet may help add years to your life--and take pounds from your frame. How smart is that!